"It's like living in a shoebox," is the often-heard complaint about the size of some modern apartments in Ireland but, on the Continent, people are far more accustomed to inhabiting spaces that Irish people "couldn't swing a cat in".

Working on this assumption and in an effort to tackle its own housing crisis, the Spanish government is looking at housing "modules" as a way out of its housing headache.

These box-like structures - like these at a recent trade fair in Barcelona - are stackable homes typically with 25-30sq m (270-320sq ft) of space and the Spanish authorities think they may be a runner with the young.